


Logic, You Say?

by Gemini1179



Series: Working Through Emotion [3]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Episode Related, F/F, F/M, M/M, What-If
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-09
Updated: 2016-09-18
Packaged: 2018-08-14 00:23:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7991803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gemini1179/pseuds/Gemini1179
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Probable collection of one or two-shots in The 100 universe. Not really sure where I'm going with this yet. It's just therapy for me.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. We Will Watch The Thrones

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Alexis_Payton](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alexis_Payton/gifts).



> I've been having trouble finding the impetus to continue When The River Meets The Sea, so I've stepped sideways to see if the writing juices will begin to flow again.  
> This particular story spawned from a conversation with the incredibly talented Alexis_Payton, so it is for her. I wanted to take a different look at the ending of episode 304, "Watch The Thrones".

He sat in an old chair at an old desk looking over the election results in front of him. Five individuals from different departments had triple-checked each portion of the results from the poll they were responsible for and sent the results to Sergeant Miller for the final tally. As Chief Guard under Marcus Kane, it had been Miller’s duty to make sure there had been no tampering with results and the election had run as per the rules of the Exodus Charter.

The solemn-looking man standing in front of Marcus Kane’s desk had done just that and the result was in. Marcus looked at the Chancellor’s Pin that Abby had left on his desk earlier that day. Overcome with worry for Clarke, her duty as Chief Medical Officer and the rising tensions created by Charles Pike and Farm Station had worn Abby Griffin down. She had no desire for the Chancellor’s Pin any longer and could not wait to give it up. Perhaps she had never really been ready for it but accepted it because it gave her the power to do things her way.

Marcus chuckled to himself at the thought. The woman followed the rules until they interfered with Momma Bear Griffin’s concern for her daughter Clarke. Then she’d simply do what needed to be done- as a mother _would_ do, even if it caused other problems. Ultimately, when he thought about it, Abby was responsible for Finn having a gun. But… the ground had broken Finn long before Abby had armed a desperate young boy. Still, the entire situation made Marcus’ original negotiations with the Commander tenuous at best, a downright death sentence at worst. He truly was lucky to have left her company alive. Fortunately, Jaha had been a more distracting presence to the Commander of the Twelve Clans, Lexa Kom Trikru.

Marcus picked up the Chancellor’s Pin and turned it over in his hand. He briefly wondered if Jaha was still alive out there somewhere. He supposed the man’s ability to bend an ear could have kept him alive but he also found that a small part of him wished that Jaha had not survived. Like Finn, Jaha had clearly been broken by the ground… or perhaps before that, in truth, but that wasn’t his concern at the moment.

“Sir, what-” David Miller began to speak as the tension in the room mounted only to be silenced by a raised hand from Marcus, who looked as defeated as Chief Miller felt himself. There was no easy path ahead of them. Kane hadn’t even raised his head from his musings over the Chancellor’s Pin.

***Markus Kane… _skrish,_ this Skaikru device… Markus Kane, are you there?***

                Both Kane and Miller were startled out of their momentary melancholy by the radio on the shelf next to Marcus coming to life with the gruff tones of Indra, the Chief of TonDC, coming through. Marcus reached for the device quickly and activated the mic.

                “Indra, good to hear from you, this is Marcus. Any word from Polis?” He tried not to keep too much hope from his voice. Hopefully Clarke and Lexa had found some way to sort out the Ice Nation. The attack on the refugees in Mount Weather had been hard on Arkadia. There were only so few of them left. Of course, another part of Marcus recognized how his people had essentially invaded a foreign territory, demanded a place of their own, killed hundreds of indigenous people and professed their distaste for the local customs in an embarrassing display of hypocrisy. Sharing a brief look with Miller, Kane waited with some trepidation for Indra’s response.

 

                ***Yes, a rider just arrived at our camp. The Commander will be here in the morning, the Azgeda threat is apparently no more.***

 

                Short, brash and to the point- that was Indra’s style and it was something Kane appreciated about the forever-scowling woman. Despite wanting more details, Kane knew Indra was a woman of few words at best and that was probably the most she had ever said to him without also describing how she would kill him, so he didn’t press for more.

                “Thank you Indra, I hope to see you tomorrow.” Kane replied, and the grunt of acknowledgement and crackle of static indicated that Indra had heard him and that the conversation was over. He’d have smiled if the situation in Arkadia wasn’t still a mess. The fallout from the election was always going to create havoc at Arkadia, but perhaps with the Commander and possibly Clarke making their way here, Marcus now had a potential solution to the problems in Arkadia. Only time would tell, for now, he had a duty to perform.

Kane stood up, Chancellor Pin clutched tightly in his left hand and the datapad with the election results in his right- which he handed to Miller. “Sergeant Miller, go inform the Guard of the election results- quietly- because if there is going to be an issue with the transition of power, it will need to be dealt with. No matter what, we obey the rule of law here, is that understood?” Sergeant Miller gave a short nod of understanding before turning to leave. He paused briefly at Kane’s final words. “When you’re done, bring two other guards with you and meet me at the detention section. This is an official act, so it’ll damn well look official.”

Once again, a short nod was all Kane received in reply before Miller disappeared into the hall beyond Kane’s office. Marcus himself began his own slow journey to the detention area. Being as slow as possible, he figured he could delay the inevitable for at least 15 to 20 minutes. It would give him sufficient time to think… to consider what the future of Arkadia might be like come the morning.

Charles Pike had always been a hard man. Short tempered and somewhat fanatical. It made for a dangerous combination here on the ground. Combined with Farm Station’s misfortune of landing in Ice Nation territory, Charles Pike was a man looking for a fight. Any fight to cover the pain of the losses he’s already felt responsible for. Mount Weather was essentially the last straw for a man like Charles Pike and Marcus truly dreaded what was to come. The ground had been hard on all of them and here was another broken soul fallen from the sky and unleashed upon the people of the twelve clans. Hannah Green was another problem. She followed Pike not because he told her to, but because she believed in him and his goals… his methods. The rest of the Farm Station survivors arrested the previous evening were sheep following their herder and it is unlikely they could be swayed from Pike’s control.

That left Bellamy Blake. It physically pained Kane to think of Bellamy. If he’d only paid more attention. If he’d only seen sooner how Pike was preying on Bellamy’s pain, he might have been able to prevent the boy’s act of treason in the first place. Pike’s name might never have ended up on the ballot and Marcus Kane would not have to take this long walk.

Bellamy had lost Clarke to her grief over Mount Weather and tried his best to move forward. But Bellamy was always a little bit broken. The constant worry for his sister- on the Ark _and_ on the ground- combined with finding a tender soul in Gina Martin and then losing her in such a horrific event… it shattered what had been left of Bellamy’s strength. Perhaps he should have left as Clarke did. It was clear to Marcus now that Clarke understood that the events of Mount Weather had compromised her. She knew she’d have been looked to for leadership and that she just was unable to bear that burden until she found some measure of peace within herself. Marcus understood that, even if Abby never could. Marcus had gone through his own trial, and even though Abby had been a part of it, Marcus himself had initially pushed for the culling back on the Ark. An event of death such as that changes a person, no matter how they rationalize it to themselves to begin with. Marcus had gone through those changes and felt like he finally was beginning to appreciate the value of each life here on the ground.

Clarke’s actions regarding Finn made sense in that moment. Finn was clearly guilty. He murdered 18 men, women and children in a fit of madness and loss. On the Ark he would have been floated without question. It shamed Marcus to think about how they’d ‘pardoned’ him- as if that would have held any sort of legitimacy among his people had the roles been reversed. Again, the hypocrisy that Skaikru forced upon the Grounders was shocking in its complete ignorance of affect.

But Clarke, Clarke had already been responsible for killing 300 grounders during their attack on the dropship. She’d lost Charlotte, Wells, and several others from the original 100 sent to the ground as well as having had to mercy-kill Atom because Bellamy was unable to apparently. He could remember seeing the panic in her eyes at the thought of losing ONE MORE- despite what he had done- and so she had acted. He hadn’t understood it at the time, but now he did. Fortunately for all of them, Finn seemed to have found some semblance of the boy he once was in giving himself up. The rest, as they say is history.

As Marcus nodded in silence to those he passed in the halls of blinking artificial light- people working, (even at this time of night) guards rotating posts, former delinquents sneaking off to find a quiet moment together- he still did not know what was in store for Bellamy Blake’s future. The boy had potential, but he also had a disappointing track record of acting without thinking until someone with a clearer head imposed some sense upon him. First it was Clarke, taking the power from the oldest of them (who carried a gun) with sheer will and determination to keep her people safe. Kane could respect that. He could also respect how much Bellamy had sacrificed for his sister, and then for the rest of the delinquents. He’d volunteered to go into Mount Weather and became a hero as far as Kane was concerned. Now though, with the loss of Gina, who had been such a soothing influence on him, it was Charles Pike who had swayed him with his words of action and strength and so Bellamy clutched on to the idea of taking back some of the ‘power’ he’d lost like grim death.

Which led them to where they were now: Bellamy locked up with Pike and his supporters for treason and Marcus Kane making his way there to tell them the results of the election like a train wreck of inevitability that you had boarded willingly, knowing the eventual end.

Rounding the final corner to the detention area, Marcus knew he had stalled long enough and his time had run out. Fortunately, Sergeant Miller had also arrived at the same time from the other corridor with two guards and gave a stiff nod. It had to be enough for Kane. It had to be.

The ten people in the detention cell perked up as Marcus led Miller and the two guards to the entrance. It was Pike who stepped forward, seeing the solemn look upon the faces of their visitors, with just the smallest of smug smiles tugging at his lips.

Kane stood on one side of the cell door as Pike stepped up to the other, the Chancellor’s Pin no doubt leaving a permanent mark clutched as tightly as it was in his hand.

Marcus Kane made no move to open the door, he simply could not bring himself to just yet. He lifted his left fist, the one holding the Chancellor’s Pin so tight, and looked at his clutching fingers. “Tell me Charles, would your first act as Chancellor really be to declare war on the Coalition?”

The smug look on Charles Pike’s face only grew in intensity as he held is hand out, palm up, in front of the meal slot in the door, awaiting the Chancellor’s Pin. His eyes drilled into the side of Marcus’ head as the other man was still staring at his own fist as if willing it not to move.

“No Marcus, my first act, as Chancellor, would be to pardon myself, and my fellow patriots in this room.” If it were possible, Pike stood slightly taller as he spoke, as if his growing confidence increased his very stature. “As my second act, I would reject the brand and the Coalition it belongs to… and as my third act, I would finish what we started.” With those last words, Charles Pike gave a hard look back to the rest of the people in the cell with him, making eye contact with each one- as if looking for weakness or confirming resolve- before turning back to Kane after receiving the affirming nods he’d been looking for.

It was then that Marcus Kane seemed to deflate somewhat, as if a great breath he had been holding was now drawn from him and he was helpless to stop it. His grip loosened until the Chancellor’s Pin sat pointedly between his thumb, index and middle fingers and he gave one last look at it before finally turning his gaze to Charles Pike.

What Pike saw when Kane made eye contact was not the look of a man resigned. It was not the look of a man who had been foolish and weak in is recent ideology.

No, it was a stronger look. It was a look of conviction; a look of belief.

It was the look of victory.

 “It is fortunate then, Charles, that you are _not_ Chancellor.” Marcus Kane spoke evenly as he finally accepted the burden that was now his to bear, lawfully won according to the law of their people. He pinned the Chancellor’s Pin to his collar, never breaking eye contact with Pike who had momentarily paled and deflated, even though his hand was still awkwardly awaiting the Chancellor’s Pin because his whole being refused to believe that he had not won. Hadn’t he inspired the people of Arkadia?

He finally felt weight in his palm, as in his moment of shock, Kane had turned his head and nodded to Sergeant Miller who then placed the election results in Pike’s open palm.

“87% of the people here, Charles. 87% don’t believe that anger should be our policy. 87% of the people here are thinking about our future, their children’s future, and in you, they see no future. You would start a war because you have been hurt and you want to hurt something back. You would condemn us all to death for your pride, and now you’ve condemned good people to share your fate.” It was Marcus Kane now, whose presence seemed to grow with every passing moment. He was very much the Chancellor elect, accepting the burden of that power, but also knowing that it must be tempered if Skaikru is to survive on the ground.

The initial murmurs amongst the prisoners quickly descended into shouts of anger, shouts of conspiracy, of a false election, with Hannah Green’s voice being the loudest, riling the others as she was wont to do- only Bellamy and Pike remained silent. Charles Pike, who only a moment ago believed he was the future of their people, was now standing in stunned silence as he looked over the results. He knew it wasn’t a fabrication, Kane had too much honour for that.

Bellamy simply looked stricken. Once again he’d gambled on whom to follow, only this time he’d lost. This time, there was no Clarke to bail him out of his mistake, and now Octavia would pay the price of his actions. Hurting her is what hurt Bellamy the most. He had thought that he could protect her, protect everyone, but he had failed and there were consequences. According to the law- and Bellamy knew the law- they had committed treason, **_he_** had committed treason, and there was only one punishment for that: death.

As he had when they were arrested at the gate, Pike turned to his people and attempted to calm them down. He knew the stakes of the game he had played, but these were still his people. When the shouting had finally stopped, he turned back to Kane- _Chancellor_ Kane.

“Marcus, these are good people, I accept whatever punishment you deem fit. I led them, it was my plan. I only ask mercy for some of the remaining few people I have left.” His eyes were as pleading as his voice. He knew Marcus to have been pragmatically ruthless on the Ark, but he was counting the fact that on the ground he’d mellowed somewhat- it was what he had earlier believed to be weakness; now Charles Pike could only hope that it was also a strength.

“Charles, you know the penalty for treason as lain out in the Exodus charter. You know what I’m compelled to do with regards to this show of… aggression. Our people cannot afford this kind of division… you’ve left me no choice.” Kane’s voice was even but firm. He could not show an ounce of weakness in this moment, Miller and the guards who had been informed of Kane’s win were at his back because they had believed in the victory, and they believed in Marcus Kane. He would not let them down.

Bellamy surged forward in that moment, tears already streaking down his face. “Please, Kane-Chancellor, don’t let Octavia see. Don’t let her see it, please.” If he could spare Octavia watching her brother be executed, he would. If that was his last honourable act, Bellamy was ok with that. With Clarke’s rejection and Gina’s death, he only had Octavia to do right by and it was his responsibility to do just that. He’d die well, but he would not put her through that.

Marcus and Bellamy held each other’s gaze a moment before Kane finally spoke. Things had fallen into place such that he now knew what he had to do. Perhaps, in time, Bellamy would understand it. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to do that. However… seeing as the plan that you all were involved in was to attack the army of Trikru warriors who were sent by the Commander to protect us from Ice Nation, I will leave your fate to the Commander herself. She’ll be here in the morning.”

And with that, Chancellor Marcus Kane turned and left the prisoners (with Miller and the two guards in tow) momentarily shocked, before he could hear the shouts beginning of how they’d be skinned alive, tortured and all other manner of barbaric punishments.

It was not the Chancellor’s Pin that Marcus Kane had that they didn’t, it was _hope_ and _belief_. He truly believed in the Commander, otherwise he never would have taken the brand. Skaikru- and Arkadia- belonged to something bigger now, and now it was their time to become accountable to it.


	2. We Will Watch The Thrones Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Lexa arrive at Indra's camp in the morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second part of the "Watch The Thrones" 'what if'. Was only planning two parts, but it looks like there will be a third.  
> I find doing any sort of writing with regards to the episodes themselves inherently leads you to the problems with the writing on the show itself- and they're so OBVIOUS. Like, how they use teleportation to have the characters be wherever the writers want them to be at whatever time. At the end of episode 4, Clarke and Lexa share a scene before going to bed in Polis at night. THE VERY NEXT MORNING, they lazily trot into Indra's camp just outside Arkadia at the start of episode 5. Of course, the cute Clexa bit followed by the 'shocking' discovery of the massacred army take the focus in the scene, but it gets dumber and dumber the more you think about it. 
> 
> Generally, that's pretty much how the entirety of Season 3 goes.
> 
> All this ranting is just to explain that I found myself writing a plausible explanation for the early arrival of Clarke and Lexa out of pure need.

               Clarke couldn’t relax. She _wished_ she could, but she couldn’t, and it wasn’t because she’d been sitting on a horse for the past four hours either having only had a couple of hours sleep before that. It was because there was no lasting ‘good’ result on the ground. It was one shitty deal after another. Any and every positive result was met with a new crisis that Clarke seemed to be perpetually thrown into the middle of and it was wearing her down. She wasn’t even considering that they were only minutes away from Indra’s current camp and therefore only minutes further till Camp Jaha- _er, Arkadia now_ , Clarke thought.

                “Thinking about home?” Lexa had been quiet all morning, seeming more at peace than Clarke could remember seeing her in a long time. It was one of the reasons Clarke was fighting so hard not to stare at the Commander. She felt like she should be angry at Lexa for being so calm when Clarke was stressing herself out with her worries. But… Lexa with _less_ worry was a beautiful thing to Clarke even though she couldn’t allow herself to get caught up in all… _that,_ just yet.

                Still, she let out a small, rueful smile finding that some of her earlier stress had simply vanished when Lexa had spoken. “Thinking about whether Arkadia ***is*** home. When I left, it had a different name… _I_ had a different name.” She hadn’t meant to be that honest with Lexa, but the genuine earnestness of the question- and the fact that Lexa seemed to be fighting an actual smile (if her current very Lexa-ish small grin was any indication)- had drawn the response out of Clarke with ease.

                Their entire journey from Polis had been quite relaxed if Clarke were honest, despite her current anxiety and lack of sleep. They had camped for a short time five hours after they left Polis. Lexa had apparently changed her mind- and her attire- shortly after having left Clarke’s room that evening and had come back about 15 minutes later dressed to leave, telling Clarke she thought it would be better to head out early that night so they could make it to Arkadia before noon. With a full moon and no threat of an Azgeda attack, they had left Polis quietly. Lexa’s guard contingent was vigilant as always, but there seemed to be a collective relief that had settled over the group knowing that Nia was dead and Roan had gone back to Azgeda as King. Lexa had turned in shortly after their camp had been set up, likely due to the admonishing looks Clarke had been giving her regarding her constantly pushing herself- especially after her duel with Roan. Clarke settled into her small tent beside Lexa’s shortly thereafter, having been quite exhausted from the day’s events. It was emotional exhaustion, but still, a couple hours sleep was a couple hours sleep.

                Now Clarke was riding this majestic black horse, something she’d only dreamt about seeing in person as a child, and was mere moments from arriving back where her people were settled. If they were still even her people. At this point, Clarke was no longer sure. There had been something quite liberating about running away from the confines and expectations of those from the Ark, known to the Clans as ‘Skaikru’, and having been away as long as Clarke was, she’d grown to appreciate the culture of the ground, so much so that she knew she was already quite attached to her place in Polis and that her stay in Arkadia would be a short one. She briefly wondered just how upset Bellamy and her mother would be with her when they realized that she no longer felt like she had a place among them, but the continually growing grin on Lexa’s face quickly melted Clarke’s negative thoughts into so much goo- as was happening more often than not these past few weeks.

_Dammit._

                “You left a hero to your people, and you return one. The Mountain Slayer returns with the body of the Ice Queen. You bring them justice.” Lexa continued and Clarke was still simply too unused to being validated- or credited- with _something_ good. Her newly developed instinct born of guilt seemed to be to deflect any sort of praise and it took her by surprise just how easily it had come to her.

                Besides, it was Lexa that did all the heavy lifting (so to speak) with regards to the justice attained for Skaikru over the Azgeda attack on the Mountain which left 37 former Farm Station survivors dead. Clarke was still upset that they had even been in the mountain in the first place, but that discussion with her mother and Kane would be happening later, she was sure. “ ** _You_** bring them justice.” Clarke emphasized her words with a pointed look at the hooded Commander. She wanted Lexa to know, in words that were seemingly incapable of leaving her own mouth, _(“I was just doing what was right for my people”?? Good grief, had she actually said that?_ Clarke was still tasting her own foot these many hours later…) just how much she truly appreciated how above-and-beyond Lexa had gone for her people. First kneeling before Clarke and swearing fealty to her, vowing to protect her people and then second, dealing with the treachery of her ambassadors in stride while finally ending Nia’s cruel reign of Azgeda. The woman truly was a visionary and now a growing legend among her people- not that she hadn’t been before of course.

                Lexa just rolled her eyes the tiniest amount and continued to look fondly at Clarke. “We bring them peace.” Clarke knew she would lose this fight of confidence boosting as she was left shaking her head slightly while fighting her own growing smile. It was just another example of how Lexa never took anything from Clarke, but was constantly giving and Clarke’s earlier stresses had vanished without her even realizing it. Clarke knew that she really hadn’t treated Lexa well in spite of it all. Even in spite of her feelings regarding Lexa leaving her at the Mountain- but that was past them now, wasn’t it? Clarke found herself allowing this growing fondness between them to fill her up instead of fighting it, as it was habit for her to do since, well, even before the Mountain if she were being honest with herself.

                A smart-ass reply was on her lips when the forward scouts had returned. _“Heda, we’ve met with General Indra’s forward guards, the General is prepared for our arrival.”_ Lexa simply nodded in acknowledgement and the party continued on the rest of the way in comfortable silence. Clarke’s silly grin simply **would not** leave her face and she was positive Indra would scowl even harder (than her usual disdained expression when regarding Clarke) at her for it. She wondered why she had even been worried earlier.

* * *

 

_God fucking dammit._

                It turns out her earlier concerns _were_ valid and now she was having to deal with yet another Skaikru-instigated mess. A potentially deadly mess that was such a colossal fuck-up, Clarke didn’t know who she wanted to punch first, Bellamy or Pike. They arrived at Indra’s camp and Indra immediately told them they had a situation. When Lexa went to follow alone, Indra and actually requested Clarke’s presence as well which had been Clarke’s first indication that something had gone down. Indra never wanted Clarke around and Clarke was just as content to continue her own internal debate or mingle with the Trikru army that seemed ready for the day and ready to move out while Lexa and Indra talked- which, if Clarke thought about it, was unusual for her to begin with. Normally she was on Lexa’s heels until someone actually stood in her way, but Clarke really hadn’t wanted Indra to ruin her emotional high she’d been enjoying that morning.

                Now, Clarke sat at the small table in the Commander’s tent Indra had set up and was rubbing her temples to fight the growing migraine. Pike, Bellamy and eight other former Farm Station survivors had stolen weapons- no, it was Bellamy who had stolen the weapons- automatic weapons- and had been leaving to attack Indra’s camp in the dead of night when they were stopped at the gates of Arkadia. This was a day ago. In the meantime, Arkadia had held an election and Pike’s name had _actually_ been on the ballot. Clarke was still shocked at that revelation. Evidently, despite Indra’s distaste for technology, she had suffered the radio Kane had given her enough for him to have explained the situation earlier in the morning.

                The only good news of the morning had been that Kane had won the election the day before. Clarke was glad to hear that. She knew her mother was drowning under the weight of the Chancellor’s Pin and in Clarke’s opinion Marcus Kane was the best candidate for leadership of Arkadia, having adjusted to the ground faster and probably better than most.

                The thing that currently shocked Clarke, but that Indra seemed devilishly pleased about, if the murderous glint in her eye had been read correctly by Clarke, was that Kane had locked up the ten people responsible and was holding them for the Commander to decide their fate. He was taking the Skaikru admission to the Coalition seriously and Clarke knew that everything she might do now was going to be weighted against her. Had Kane insisted on applying Skaikru justice to the currently held ten, Lexa would have accepted that, Clarke knew, because they had never left Arkadia and Lexa did not usually meddle in internal Clan affairs of justice. However, she would likely have put a kill order on the ten of them if they ever stepped foot outside of Skaikru lands- lands that had been gifted to Skaikru from Lexa and Trikru following the fall of the Mountain. Kane was making the politically smart move in showing the Coalition clans that Skaikru were committing to Lexa’s leadership and not trying to pretend that their clan could handle criminal situations ‘better’. That, Clarke knew, would only breed resentment for Skaikru among the Clans- as if there wasn’t enough there already. Kane was making a good decision and it was killing Clarke because she was just so sick of all the death. Where did it end? Was it even possible to go a few peaceful months on the ground without someone trying to kill someone else simply for existing? It was times like this when Clarke doubted her own ability to remain sane.

                The only thing Lexa had said after Indra had explained the situation was, “Summon Chancellor Kane and Abbi Griffin.” Clarke had almost voiced an objection until she saw the dark glint in Lexa’s eyes. It had clearly not been the time to test Heda’s boundaries as far as Clarke’s comfort was concerned.

                That had been fifteen minutes ago and now Lexa’s back was to Clarke’s seated position, her posture ramrod straight, seemingly looking at the small fire in the tent but Clarke couldn’t be sure. Indra was standing just inside the door and the tense silence filling up the tent was killing Clarke. She had no idea how she was supposed to respond to this. Bellamy had not only committed treason against Skaikru, but had armed people willing to kill the army protecting them in their sleep without provocation. What made it all worse is that he apparently had been planning on joining them. Clarke could recall now the broken look on his face as he pleaded with her to return during the initiation ceremony. She didn’t hear the change in his attitude to “US versus THEM” at the time though because she couldn’t. Not then. Not when she had finally secured a peace for her people. Now though, she can recall it. Clearly he had lost someone in the Azgeda attack on Mount Weather and it was the final straw for him. It saddened Clarke to think that perhaps if she hadn’t left Bellamy might not be as broken as he clearly was now.

                But weren’t they all broken? Hadn’t the ground taken its pound of flesh from them all? Clarke had to leave her people because of it. She did not want to think about death ever again if she didn’t have to and now she was literally named after it. The title of Wanheda still stung. Clarke understood its uses politically, but that did not mean she enjoyed the title even if she was coming to accept the reverence that some of the clan members in Polis spoke it with.

                The noise outside the tent, combined with Indra moving to check on who’d arrived jolted Clarke out of her momentary haze. Kane and her mother were let in followed by Indra. It was then that Lexa turned around.

                “Chancellor Kane, I hear congratulations are in order,” Lexa lifted a hand to stall Kane’s response before continuing while Abby had gone to stand beside Clarke, putting her hand on her daughter’s shoulder in a small measure of comfort. “However,” the Commander continued, “it seems the celebration for your victory and ours needs to be put on hold as you have ten prisoners held for treason against your own laws as well as for intending to attack the Trikru army that was protecting Arkadia from a possible Azgeda threat. I threat that I can assure you is no more. The body of the Ice Queen was brought with us today as proof.” Lexa’s voice was strong and her face gave nothing away, she was Heda right now and Clarke was actually unsure of what was going to happen.

                Kane had the wherewithal to lower his gaze momentarily in deference to Lexa before speaking, “As Chancellor, I thank you on behalf of Skaikru for bringing justice to our people for the crimes committed against us by Azgeda.” At his genuine gratitude, Lexa gave a small nod.

                “So how then shall we deal with this Pike and his followers? Our own laws are clear on what should occur, what would Skaikru laws dictate as punishment for treason and conspiracy to commit murder?” Clarke, Abby and Kane all visibly flinched at the question that was calmly asked. They all knew the laws of the Ark called for death by floating for EVERY crime, not just major ones- like the ones Pike, Bellamy and the others were now accused of.

                Lexa watched the three Skaikru members flinch with a calculating eye. “I see,” was all she said before looking at Clarke’s despondent face, knowing what was to come from the blonde ambassador to the Skaikru. Abby at least knew enough to keep quiet until she was addressed by Lexa. She was quite done pushing the young leader of the Coalition.

                “Lexa-” Clarke began.

“Indra, Chancellor Kane, leave us. Abbi, you stay.” Lexa spoke before Clarke could finish. Marcus merely nodded and left ahead of an obviously fuming Indra while Abby looked like a deer in the headlights. She was concerned about the Commander’s hard tone and hadn’t really been sure why she was summoned in the first place. She’d originally thought it was because the incident had originally occurred under her time as Chancellor and had even considered that the Commander might hold her responsible for it. Needless to say that other than seeing Clarke again, Abby was not keen on being in Lexa’s presence at the moment. Stubborn parental protectiveness kept her in her spot.

Lexa turned her back on Clarke and Abby once Indra and Kane left the room. Clarke saw the minute drop in Lexa’s shoulders before she spoke again. “So tell me, Klark. How does this end? How will you save the lives of your people who committed a crime against mine? Against your own?”

“I can’t.” Clarke choked back her own sob and Lexa finally took pity on her, turning her head slightly to indicate that Clarke had her attention. “Only you can do that. What happened was essentially an act of war. One that was initiated without the approval of Skaikru leadership, but also contained by them before anyone got hurt.”

“These are reasons why I do not hold your mother accountable, nor Kane, however Pike, Bellomi and their followers made their own choices. Tell me again Klark, with words this time, what exactly would the punishment for their crimes be among your people?” Lexa had turned back towards them, her hands clasped behind her back, only sparing a glance at Abby upon mentioning her, but otherwise kept her focus on Clarke. Her features remained impassive, but Clarke could see strength, not anger reflected in Lexa’s eyes. She was building to something.

“They… on the Ark, they would have been floated.” Clarke admitted with a small measure of defeat, though it would not stop her from continuing to plead her case.

“Klark, what would the punishment have been for stealing bread?” This time Lexa stepped towards Clarke, her green eyes never leaving Clarke’s blue. Clarke, still seated, glanced at her mother, who was looking between Clarke and Lexa like she might have to throw herself in between them to buy her daughter precious seconds to escape. Clarke gave her mother a small smile and stood up, allowing her hand to fall off Clarke’s shoulder.

“They would have been floated. But-” once again Lexa interrupted Clarke, this time with the wave of a hand and Clarke really only stopped talking in shock of being treated like so many other subordinates in Lexa’s court.

Now Lexa turned her gaze to Abby. “Explain to me _fisa_ Abbi, what exactly ‘floating’ is.” Abby unconsciously stood straighter under Lexa’s gaze.

“On the Ark, a person over the age of 18 and convicted of a crime, any crime, no matter how small, was taken to an airlock. It was a small room that served as an entrance to the vacuum of space from the Ark. Once inside, the door on the inside was sealed and the door on the outside would be opened and the air, as well as the person in the airlock, would be sucked into space.” She had her own troubles getting the words out, memories of her husband coming unbidden to her thoughts.

                Lexa did not stop. “Once exposed to the vacuum of space, what happened to the person- what happened to their body?” Lexa’s mask gave nothing away and Clarke just wanted it all to stop but stayed rooted in her spot. She would see this through, just like her mother.

“Well, a person would remain conscious for probably 10 seconds or so, during that time all of the air in their lungs would be sucked out due to decompression. Water vapour would begin to form in the soft tissues, the extremities such as nose and mouth would cool to near freezing temperatures shortly thereafter due to the continual evacuation of gas and water vapour through them. Paralysis would set in shortly after a person lost consciousness… as well as convulsions…” Abby began to trail off and Lexa seemed to spare her from continuing.

“So, not a pleasant way to die. Certainly a clean one for those passing the sentence though, isn’t it? Is that what made overlooking your own people’s hypocrisy so easy when the _ripa_ Finn was sentenced to death?” Lexa took no joy in bringing up the boy Clarke had essentially mercy-killed, however, it was necessary. Clarke needed to free herself of her own inconsistencies if she was to be a truly effective ambassador and leader to her people. Even Abby had the sense in that moment to look ashamed of her actions during that time. They saw the grounder justice as savage and felt like it shouldn’t apply to them. But Finn had killed 18 people- innocent people- and Abby could admit that he had sealed his own fate. In truth, the Commander had granted him a mercy he may not have deserved by allowing Clarke’s ‘goodbye’. Abby had no good response for the Commander.

                “Thank you Abbi, you may go. I wish to speak alone with Klark for a few more minutes.” Abby looked like she wanted to say more, like she wanted to stay and support her daughter, but Lexa’s tone had been soft and kind, despite the expressionless mask of Heda she had been wearing. She gave her daughter a quick hug and left the tent, leaving Clarke and Lexa alone in the tent.

                Clarke and Lexa remained only a few feet apart, eyes locked and silent for another moment. Light from the small fire in the room as well as the lit candles spread about reflected in expressive greens and blues. “Lexa, we can’t just kill them. Please, what kind of leader do you want to be, the kind who kills every chance she gets because that’s your way, or the kind who shows the world a better way?” Clarke wanted to step closer to Lexa, she wanted to grab her arm, as if that would convey all that she wanted to convey. How this day had started so well.

                “Has Lincoln ever told your people why our punishments are so harsh, Klark?” Her voice had gone even softer and Clarke could see the softness reflected in her eyes. Softness that Clarke believed was reserved just for her. Lexa _did_ step closer to Clarke.

                “He said… he said if death has no cost, life has no value.”

“And what value was life aboard the Ark if it was thrown away so casually? I do not dole out punishments simply because they ‘are our way’, nor do I take delight in carrying them out. No one should and that is the point. Do you think any of the judgements I have made, regarding Finn, regarding Gostos, regarding even Raveion were easy? Or done without thought? Do you believe cruelty comes easy to me? Am I the villain of this story again, Klark?” The passion in Lexa’s words hit Clarke like a punch to the gut. She knew Lexa felt strongly despite her near-constant mask of indifference as Heda.

“At least, at least let me talk to Bellamy. He’s as broken as I am Lexa, but while I did not have the courage to stay with my people after Mount Weather, he did and he’s been carrying the weight of what I left behind by himself.” Clarke was all but pleading with Lexa for yet another chance, another chance to help people that did not really deserve it, but that was also one of the qualities Lexa loved about Clarke. Not that she would tell her that… just yet.

Lexa softened her gaze once more and approached Clarke, putting her hands on Clarke’s arms, just below the shoulder, and squeezing gently. “You are mistaken Klark, it wasn’t that you lacked the courage to stay, it was that _you_ had the courage to leave. You may go speak with Belomi alone, however you should probably prepare yourself for what you may face. My final judgement will be at sundown.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did a little research on exposure to the vacuum of space. It is actually quite interesting. While you'd lose consciousness within about 10 seconds, 15 at the most, you can remain exposed to space for about 90 seconds and revived with little permanent damage... shit, that just gave me another idea...
> 
> Anywho, this was originally going to just be a two-part with a more dramatic confrontation between Clarke and Lexa at the end but this felt more in line with how I felt the character consistency on the show could have been at that point. I did have to have Lexa deliver the line about being the villain because Clarke really irks me in how much of an asshole she is sometimes when she's got her blinders on.

**Author's Note:**

> Here we have a Pike that is as close as I could get him to his show counterpart, in that he's fairly one-dimensional. Charles Pike, as written and acted on the show only existed to serve the purpose of being an antagonist for antagonist's sake. No one feels bad for Pike, no one empathizes with him because he is a completely unsympathetic character. In "When the River Meets the Sea", if I get to continuing it, Pike there is something that I'm still working on. As that whole story is a season 3 redux, I've decided there to have Pike be less one-dimensional and therefore his character may not be as easily reviled as it is on the show. So head's up there.
> 
> Also, I think this is going to have a second part for sure. ;)


End file.
